Legio II Hispania

Legio II Hispania, formerly known as Legio II Alaudae, was a legion of the Roman Republic and Roman Empire raised in 45 BC by Julius Caesar. The legion was one of the legions that supported Octavian's rise to power, with the great Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa leading it into battle.

History
Legio II Alaudae was founded in 45 BC in Genua, Cisalpine Gaul on the orders of Julius Caesar. The Roman Civil War had already ended at this point, but in 44 BC Caesar was assassinated by Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus, and Caesar's adoptive son Octavian used the legion to seize power. He gave command of the legion to his childhood friend Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, and it was renamed to "Legio II Hispania" when it was dispatched to fight Marcus Aemilius Lepidus in Spain. The legion, while made up mostly of Roman citizens, also included mercenary Celts from southern France and Spain, and its campaigns would see it fight across a variety of theatres under Agrippa.